September 1, 1971
They stepped off the platform and looked lost among the throng of students rushing in every direction. Remus was glad that their luggage would be take up to the school later. He didn't think he could hold on to it in this crowd. The boys huddled in a corner debating about whether to follow the line of older students that seemed to know where they were going. They had been told that first years went to the castle separately, but no one mentioned how. Sirius and James wanted to follow the older students. Remus briefly mentioned asking someone where to go, but the idea was quickly shot down. Peter just wanted to stay put.
Finally, they saw the glow of a lamp that went far above the students' heads. Even in the din of noise, they could still hear the booming voice. "Firs' years! Firs' years over here." The boys rushed to follow the sound in relief. Sirius, who was in the lead, stopped abruptly. James and Remus collided into him, and Peter toppled over bringing down an unhappy looking Severus in his wake.
A fight probably would have ensued had they not been staring open-mouthed at the enormous an in front of them. His face was lit ominously by the swinging lantern, and the boys could see mounds of bushy hair sprouting in all directions from it. They all took a few steps back before realizing that hidden in the beard was a broad smile. "All right there boys? I'm Rubeus Hagrid" the large man called as the rest of the first years pooled around them. James, Remus, and Peter timidly smiled back at the man. Sirius looked a little confused, but managed a small grin himself. Sirius had grown up with stories about dangerous half-breeds, and this man looked certainly looked like he had some giant's blood in him. Sirius pushed the thought away though. He didn't think anyone with a drop of giant's blood would be allowed around the students of Hogwarts. This man was probably just an unfortunate victim of an engorgement charm gone wrong.
When everyone had gathered, Hagrid led them down a very steep path. Hagrid had to keep stopping and waiting for the first years to catch up. They turned sharply around a bend and reached a lake with startlingly black waters. All of the first years were distracted from this, however, by the view of the magnificent castle sitting just across the lake. There were many muttered ooohs and ahhs. Sirius stared at the castle for a long moment taking in everything from the turrets to the way the many windows glinted in the moonlight. He smiled widely at the other boys and simply said "home". They could not have agreed more.
Hagrid finally got everyone's attention and led the first years over to the little boats that were happily swaying into each other at the edge of the lake. "No more'n four to a boat!" Hagrid called, and there was a great scuffle to find newly made friends to sit with. The boys were happy that their group was already formed, and they hopped into one of the first boats available. Once Hagrid finally got everyone into a boat and separated a noisy group of six girls who were insisting that they all sit together, he took his place in the last empty boat. "Forward" Hagrid yelled, and without warning the boats shot off gliding smoothly across the lake's surface.
All four boys enjoyed the trip greatly. They skimmed their fingers across the surface of the lake and rocked the boat back and forth to make the trip more exciting. James was joking about tossing Peter overboard, but he caught Remus' small disapproving look and thought better of it. Sirius let loose a loud maniacal laugh when they went into a dark tunnel and grinned when a few people screamed in fear. James, Peter, and Remus promptly felt the need to try out their own evil laughs. They reached the end of the lake with a thud as the boats collided with land and Hagrid led them over to a set of giant oak doors.
The doors were quickly opened to reveal a tall witch with gleaming black hair that was pulled into a tight bun. Her face was set in a thin line that seemed to scream discipline. Nearly all of the first years got quiet immediately. James, who was turned to face Sirius, let loose one last evil sounding laugh until the witch came and rested her hand on his shoulder. James was instantly silent and the other three boys had a hard time not snickering at his expression. "I will take them from here Hagrid" the witch said briskly, and she led them into the entrance hall. Her hand never left James' shoulder.
The tall witch led them into a small chamber within the school before finally releasing the scared looking James. "Welcome to Hogwarts. My name is Professor McGonagall" the witch said before giving them a small smile for the first time. "The start of term feast will begin shortly, but first we must sort all first years into your houses. While you are attending Hogwarts, your House will be your family. You will have classes without your house, sleep in your house dormitory, and spend free time in your House common room. There are four houses: Gryffindor, Hufflepuff, Ravenclaw, and Slytherin. Each house has a noble history. Your triumphs will earn your House points, while rule-breaking will lose House points" McGonagall's eyes seemed to flit over the four boys as she spoke the last line.
"I will be back in a moment to start the sorting." McGonagall ended. The group was left alone, and everyone looked frightened. James seemed sure that he would be placed in Gryffindor, but the other three boys had their doubts. Peter did not feel brave, smart, cunning, or just. He was mainly worried about being placed in a house with his new friends. Peter didn't want to have to make friends again, and these boys had already accepted him. Sirius knew that he would probably be placed in Slytherin. He didn't want to see the look on James' face when he went to sit with the opposite house. Sirius also really didn't want to associate with his cousins in Slytherin. Remus was also pretty sure that he was going to Slytherin. It seemed the darkest of the four houses, and he knew the monster inside him would get him placed there. Remus knew that he should just be thankful that he was allowed to go to the school at all though, so he tried to convince himself that any house would be fine with him. The first years' voices were getting shrill with anticipation when Professor McGonagall finally returned. She led them into a giant hall where the rest of the student body was already seated and stopped at the front of the room gesturing for some reason at a very old hat.
A/N: Thank you guys so much for the reviews! They let me know whether or not I am on the right track. :)